Florence Italy

Florence Italy: April 23-25, 2010

We began our tour of Florence at the Academy of Fine Arts, where various sculptures by Michelangelo are on display. Perhaps his most famous, David, sculpted when he was only 29 years old, is magnificent. Our guide (far right in photo) was excellent, sharing details and his own passion for this work as he described subtleties about David as we walked 360 degrees around the statue. Unfortunately, no photos are permitted in the museum, but Artie was inspired to buy two books about Michelangelo at the gift shop and enjoyed seeing photos of these works of art while reading about Michelangelo's life.

Fortunately, there is a replica of the David in a nearby plaza, along with several other famous statues.

Michelangelo (1475-1564) captures the concentration on David's face as he considers his upcoming challenge to Goliath with just a simple slingshot.

With furrowed brow, David holds the rock in his left hand while his right gently encloses the T-bar of wood attached to the sling. Notice the detail of veins in his hand and the heart-shaped notches in the eyes to provide focus and intensity.

Michelangelo used a clever technique with a tree branch tucked behind David's right foot to allow support for the whole structure, while the rest of the body appears fluid and free. Completed in 1504, after two years of dedicated work, this statue is all carved from one piece of marble that was a remnant from another unfinished project. Michelangelo had to work around the constraints of the marble shape given to him in order to expose this masterpiece.

We continued our tour around the city of Florence.

Ornate facades with multi-colored marble decorate the cathedral of Florence.

Within these immense structures, nooks and crannies are filled with beautiful sculptures, inlaid shapes and colors.

Carved and gilded doors decorate another building in this plaza. The actual gold artwork is safely kept in a museum.

You can appreciate the detail of this art when you see it up close on this massive door, across the street from the churches shown above. What a center of art!

In the same square with the replica David, are these other fine sculptures in marble and bronze.

Had enough culture? Time to shop!

We visited a gold and leather gallery, where Sherry, Stewart and other members of our group became fashion models.

Lilia and Jake looked like stars.

The smell and feel of fine Italian leather probably was as nice to us as the smell and feel of our cash was to the salespeople.

We bought two reversible monogrammed leather belts, and later a couple of jackets.

We had the afternoon to ourselves to walk along the river and through town. It's a beautiful place to relax for a while.

We took the opportunity for Margy to take a nap and for Artie to do laundry at this coin-operated site within walking distance from our hotel. We were now set for the balance of our trip.

Sherry and Stewart elected to go on the optional Tuscan dinner event. These are their photos that evening.

They drove out to the Tuscan Hills to enjoy a traditional Florentine meal in a picturesque country setting.

Around the table, from left to right: Gail, Stan, Elaine, Marty, Michael, Liz, Dan, Margaret, Stewart and Sherry.

Well fed and rested, we were all ready for the next day's travel from Florence to Venice, by way of Verona.

Next stops Verona, Venice, Ravenna, Assisi and Orvieto

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We began our tour of Florence at the Academy of Fine Arts, where various sculptures by Michelangelo are on display. Perhaps his most famous, David, sculpted when he was only 29 years old, is magnificent. Our guide (far right in photo) was excellent, sharing details and his own passion for this work as he described subtleties about David as we walked 360 degrees around the statue. Unfortunately, no photos are permitted in the museum, but Artie was inspired to buy two books about Michelangelo at the gift shop and enjoyed seeing photos of these works of art while reading about Michelangelo's life.

Fortunately, there is a replica of the David in a nearby plaza, along with several other famous statues.

With furrowed brow, David holds the rock in his left hand while his right gently encloses the T-bar of wood attached to the sling. Notice the detail of veins in his hand and the heart-shaped notches in the eyes to provide focus and intensity.


Ornate facades with multi-colored marble decorate the cathedral of Florence.


		Within these immense structures, nooks and crannies are filled with beautiful sculptures, inlaid shapes and colors.


		Carved and gilded doors decorate another building in this plaza. The actual gold artwork is safely kept in a museum.


		In the same square with the replica David, are these other fine sculptures in marble and bronze.


The smell and feel of fine Italian leather probably was as nice to us as the smell and feel of our cash was to the salespeople.


		We bought two reversible monogrammed leather belts, and later a couple of jackets.


We had the afternoon to ourselves to walk along the river and through town. It's a beautiful place to relax for a while.

		We took the opportunity for Margy to take a nap and for Artie to do laundry at this coin-operated site within walking distance from our hotel. We were now set for the balance of our trip.


Sherry and Stewart elected to go on the optional Tuscan dinner event. These are their photos that evening.


They drove out to the Tuscan Hills to enjoy a traditional Florentine meal in a picturesque country setting.